Shadows of Destiny
by AniMouse
Summary: Misty's being haunted by a dangerous pokemon. When an old friend returns, she has to make a serious decision. Disclaimer: I don't own pokemon.
1. Shadowed Dreams

A chill swept through the room, and I knew it was back.  
  
I could see the outline of its vast purple shape as it hung in the misty air, lingering above me. Its eyes snapped open, which threw a jolt of shock through my body, though this had happened many times before.The tiny pupil swam in the large white of its eye. It scanned the area, searching over the ground, looking for my figure through the darkness of the night. His deep plum colored hands were outstretched, searching the moist ground. Its jagged jaw hung open, revealing the crimson lining of its mouth. The centers of its eyes dwindled in size as it failed to find a focal point as it searched for my outline amongst the shadows of midnight.   
"Haaaaauuuunnnnttttteeeerrrrrr....", It groaned wearily. I crouched in the shadows, hoping, wishing, praying it wouldn't notice me - but I had been seen. I tried to move, but my limbs were frozen in fear. I instantly felt a rush of cold sweep through my body. I opened my mouth to call out, but no scream emerged. I felt the energy drain from me like water being squeezed from a sponge.  
I sat upright in my bed and wiped off the sweat from my forehead with the back of my hand. I looked out the window of the tall lighthouse where my makeshift bedroom was now located. I'd been having that dream for a couple of months, and it was always the same. The haunter wanted to hunt me down, drain me of my energy, and detach my spirit from my body and send it endlessly floating in the sands of lost time. Not where it was supposed to be, in the afterlife. That Haunter needed power, and for some reason, I seemed to be his only resource. But why? Surely Lt. Surge or Lance or anyone big and strong had more power than I did -- so why did it prey on me?  
I once inquired Professor Redwood about my dreams. He said that I was having a rare form of dream. This was the kind of dream that alerted you of something that was actually going on somewhere, or was going on in the future. And this kind of dream could also affect your physical state. So, if I died in my dreams ... well, it wouldn't be good.  
Too scared to go back to sleep, I got out of bed and walked over to the full length mirror that hung on the back of my door. My long, wavy, red hair cascaded down my shoulders like a waterfall.   
Still wearing my blue Gyrados-print PJ's, I cautiously opened the door of the my room and began to descend the long, winding staircase. I reached the bottom and stepped outside. It was chilly outside, I wished I had changed into my clothes before coming down, But I walked down to the pebbled beach anyway. The mist swept up by the waves breaking on shore felt cool against my cheeks, and the distant call of seagulls brought a smile to my face. I folded my arms as I looked over the horizon, and sighed. I stared out at the ocean. I loved this little island -- but my dream had always been to become a famous water trainer. But I ended up coming here. I guess I should be thankful I ended up here. Some people ended up a lot are less fortunate. Like Tracey.   
"Misty!" Someone called out. I turned to see who it was.   
"Marina!" I shouted back. "Why are you up so early?" She jogged up to me, Her gray eyes shining. Marina works at the Marina - it's the big joke here on the island. She's also one of the few people I know who actually looks good with blue hair.  
"I just felt like I needed to come out and get some exercise. You know, get rid of some of that 'fat'." She flashed a wide grin, and I laughed. We always tease Marina about how "fat" she is - she's skinny as a rail.  
"You do have a point." I smirked. "I just wanted to come out and catch the waves early." I said.  
"You're not having those dreams again, are you?" Marina said, a worried expression crossing her face.   
"Oh, no." I said, lying through my teeth. I really didn't want to worry my friends about my dreams. It was probably nothing anyway. Marina's face fell.  
"I've known you since you've moved here, and I can tell when you're lying." She said. "You really should get someone to analyze all that stuff about the Haunter."  
"Well, I better get going." I said, desperately trying to change the subject. I waved and continued down to the island's only Pokemon center. I opened the door to the building and smiled. Nurse joy had fallen alseep at the counter, but Chansey was still busy. A couple of younger trainers were sleeping on the couches that lined the walls of the Pokemon center. I walked over to the phone booth in the corner and slipped a couple of coins into the slot, and dialed a number that had become very familiar now. The phone rang a couple times, and the answer machine picked up.  
"Hello, you've reached the home of Ash Ketchum, Pokemon Master. I'm sorry I'm not available right now, but please leave you name and number, and I'll get back to you as soon as I can." There was a beep, then silence. I couldn't bring myself to say anything, so I hung up.  
"Probably at some night club." I mumbled to myself softly. Suddenly, the phone rang again. I picked it up.  
"Hello?"  
"Hello, may I speak to the operator of the Marina? Or anyone who's awake?" Said a panicked young man's voice at the other end.  
"This is the lighthouse operator, no one else is available at the moment -- may I help you?" I asked.   
"Please - something's gone wrong. Something's gone terribly wrong. And I need you help before it's too la-"  
Silence.   
  
  
I don't own pokemon, I don't own Nintendo, blah blah blah. I do own the characters I made up. So don't sue me. 


	2. A Breathtaking Rescue

The scrawny-looking young man at the controls of the S.S. Aqua looked up.  
"Uh, sir?" he squeaked. The muscular man in the opposite corner of the room looked up.  
"Hold yer Ponyta - just get the damn thing back on course. It shouldn't be that hard. The radar -"  
"But Captain Surge.." the skinny man began to protest.  
"Just fix it! How hard is this? I can always get someone else to do it if.."  
"I can't read any of the instruments! Come look! It's like there's this big.. hole. In the radar screen. It's blank."  
Surge leaned over the screen and released a string of vocabulary not often encouraged for use in the lastest edition of Webster's Dictionary.  
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The phone dropped from my hand and clattered to the ground, and bounced back up on its curly cord. I watched it dangle there for a moment, trying to suspend my mind from the utter chaos overtaking it. The voice - it wasn't one I knew. But the tone was. Someone was in trouble. And someone was in trouble right now.  
I felt myself shaking with every step I took as a hobbled over to Nurse Joy's desk. I gently shook her arm until she woke up and looked at me. The first thing she did was put a hand to my forehead.  
"Misty! Are you all right?"  
"Yes. But someone else isn't. They were talking about - the Marina. So I'd guess it's a boat or something. I'll go turn on the lighthouse. Wake everyone up." She looked at me like I was crazy as I stumbled over the words and I rushed out the door.  
It was high tide, and I felt the water seeping through my tennis shoes as I splashed along the shore. I arrived at the lighthouse and almost ripped the door off the hinges as I pulled it open and slammed it shut behind me, then ran up the stairs, skipping every other step.  
I finally reached the room below the light itself, and after slipping off my soggy socks and shoes, I adjusted some knobs and dials and had the light streaming across the murky ocean withing seconds. I sighed and dragged myself over to the window.  
And what did I see on the sea? You'll never believe me.  
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The S.S. Aqua was being tossed about like a little toy boat in a bathtub. Every now and then, a sharp rock would scratch the side, or dent the hull. Captain Surge was enraged.  
"So the radar's blocked, you lost contact with the shore, and now this? A storm around OUR boat, but about a kilometer out, it stops - but the wretched thing moves with us. Forget this, get out the maps."   
The skinny man pulled out a number of maps, and pulled up the Global Positioning System on the computer.  
"According to the GPS, sir, this is our latitude and longitude." Surge looked at the numbers, and glanced down at the map. His eyes grew wide with fear.  
"H-hold on. Read those numbers out loud. I don't know what kind of crud this is, but..." Surge's fingers trembled.  
"That's right sir. Would you like me to point it out on the map? It's right here, sir - " he pinted at the page, and then the man stopped, and rubbed his eyes. "I think we have a problem, sir."  
"Yes, you could say that. we're only, what, a mile and a half away from a tropical island that we're going to hit head on in a matter of minutes? Yes, I guess that's a problem." Surge's beet-red face was twisted in anger.   
"Is there not any way we can change course? Why didn't we notice this sooner, sir?"   
"We can't change course. No time. And don't call me Sir. Call me Captain Surge."  
"Okay sir. So what do we do?" the little man asked, his whole body shaking. Surge shouted his answer to the whole ship, screaming at the top of his lungs:  
"ABANDON SHIP!"  
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"Oooooooh my God. God, God, God."  
A large boat was being tossed across the waves by a solitary storm, one that seemed to only surround she ship itself. It was a matter of kilometers away from smashing into the flimsy piers and fishing boats at the Marina. It looked like the ship that used to sail from Olivine. The one that he always sailed on...  
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Ash was tearing apart the whole cabin looking for his life jacket as the boat tipped from side to side like some sort of amusement ride, each time taking his belongings and furniture with it the the opposite side of the room. Finally spotting the self-inflating garment, he slipped it over his head, and checking that his six pokeballs were still firmly attached to his belt, he flew out of the room down the long, pitch black hallway. Suddenly, an ear-splitting crack and an immense flash of light filled the room. A tall shadow loomed above him, and he looked up just in time to see a large wooden beam which appeared to be rapidly increasing in size.  
And then everything went black.  
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I tore myself from the window and threw open the door. I missed the first step and tumbled down the stairsto the landing where my room was. Ignoring the aching in my head, I looked down at my ankle, which seared with pain. Trying to put my mind on something else, and reminding myself of what was going on, I recomposed myself and forced my legs to get me to the bottom of the lighthouse.  
Everyone stood on the beach. Watching. Hoping. That was all we could do. Marina saw me limping and rushed over so I could lean on her. Children clung their mother's skirts, wondering what was going on. We all watched helplessly in horror.  
I remember that sound. I think we'll all remember that sound. It was the sound of Metal crushing metal, metal crushing wood, evil crushing souls. It was a creak, a crash, a scream that rang out as the ship collided with boats, docks, land, and rock.   
It was true that most people had gotten out on lifeboats, as we noticed all but one were gone. All of the crew, and most passengers had probably made it safely, though we couldn't see through the mist that now covered the black waters around the island. But from what remained of the S.S. Aqua now, the people who didn't get on the lifeboat didn't appear to be survivors.   
I could have just gone on with my life then. But I had to know. Ash sailed on the S.S. Aqua all the time. Yeah, there was a slim chance that he had ever been on the boat. And if he had, 90% of the people got out safely. But I had to know.   
I took a step away from Marina, and looked around at everyone to make sure no one was watching. Before anyone could stop me, I bolted across the sand and plunged into the dark, treacherous waters. Naturally, everyone screamed at me to get out. But 


End file.
